The Walking Dead Mid-Season 7 Premiere: 6 Ups & 3 Downs From 'Rock In The Road'

5. The Whole Ensemble Clicked

The Walking Dead Alexandria Rick Michonne
Gene Page/AMC

Too often last year the show focused on just one location, with usually only a small number of characters involved (Carol and Morgan; Daryl and Dwight; Maggie and Sasha, just Tara). Some worked better than others, but it quickly became tiring, and halted the progress of the split narratives.

Things are starting to coalesce now though, and the mid-season premiere does a good job of showing how The Walking Dead can work as an ensemble piece. There are still probably too many characters to juggle expertly, but those it shows here work well for the most part, with each getting an individual moment.

Andrew Lincoln's is, as is so often the case, excellent as Rick Grimes, but Jesus gets a little bit more screen time here too (which is definitely welcome), while each of Michonne, Rosita, Daryl, Morgan, and Aaron feel important to the plot. We see different characters, different locations, albeit through one storyline, and it makes for more effective storytelling and better character work.

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Contributor

NCTJ-qualified journalist. Most definitely not a racing driver. Drink too much tea; eat too much peanut butter; watch too much TV. Sadly only the latter paying off so far. A mix of wise-old man in a young man's body with a child-like wonder about him and a great otherworldly sensibility.